Flue cooling arrangement for cooling refrigeration units



Allg. 12, 1952 Y L W, ATCHISQN 2,606,429

' FLUE COOLING ARRANGEMENT FOR COOLING REFRIGERATION UNITS Filed Aug. 2, 1949 Irv/eh to 1^: Leonard. W. Atchison,

His Attorne);

Patented Aug. 12, 1952 FLUE COOLING Ali-RANGEMENT FOR COOLING REFRIGERATION UNITS Leonard W. Atchison, Erie, Pa., assignor to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York Application August 2, 1949, serial No. 108,076

My invention relates to refrigerators and more particularly to arrangements for cooling the refrigerating apparatus.

9 Claims. (Cl. 62-117.4)

It is an object of my invention to provide an Y improved arrangement unit.

It is another object of my invention to .provide an improved arrangement for increasing the ow of cooling air over a refrigerating unit. y

Further objects and advantages of my invention will become apparent as the following description proceeds and the features of novelty which characterize my invention will be pointed out with particularity in th-e claims annexed to and forming part of this specification,

In carrying out the objects of my invention, spaced vertical barriers are arranged between the condenser and the rear wall of the refrigerator to provide 'a flue and the refrigerating unit is positioned at the lower end of this flue, the increased draft in the ilue as a result of the high temperature of the refrigerating unit being utilized thereby'V to secure increased flow of air over the refrigerating unit. A further increase in air flow over the refrigerating unit is achieved by arranging the condenser tubing so that warm refrigerant from the compressor of the refrigerating unit is directed first to the section of the condenser between the spaced barriers. This for cooling a refrigerating warmer refrigerant causes an increased draft in this region of the condenser and, because of the location of the refrigerating unit, this increased draft'iseffective to cause increased circulation of air over'the unit.

-Foria better understanding of my invention refence` may be had to the accompanying drawings lin'which Fig. 1 is a side elevation view, partlyinv section, of a refrigerator incorporating an embodiment of my invention; Fig. 2 is a view taken along the line 2-2 in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along the lines 3 3 in Fig. 2; and Fig. 4 is a perspective View of a portion of the condenser.

Referring now to the drawing there is shown a refrigerator I which includes a food storage compartment 2 and a machin-ery compartment 3 arranged below the food storage compartment. A door 4 is provided for closing the access opening of the food storage compartment. A cover 5 is provided for closing the front opening of the machinery compartment, the lower portion 6 of the cover being provided with louvers I for permitting entrance of air into the machinery compartment.

A refrigerant pumping unit 8 is positioned in the machinery compartment. This pumping unit includes a motor (not shown) and a compressor (not shown) disposed within a hermetically sealed case. The pumping unit is supported by brackets 9 from two cross pieces IB which are secured to the rear wall or to a supporting frame of the refrigerator. Refrigerant is directed in a conventional manner from the pumping unit in closed circuit through a condenser II and an evaporator l2 which is .positioned within the food storage compartment 2. The condenser, which is employed for cooling and liquefying the compressed refrigerant, is of the plate type and is mounted on the rear wall of the refrigerator. The condenser II includes a solid plate or sheet of metal I3 to which plurality turns of tubing I4 are secured in heat exchange relationship. The sheet i 3 is formed of U-shaped cross section including a flat back portion l5 and two side portions I6 and I'I. Flanges IB and I9 are provided at the ends of the side portions and a plurality of openings 2E are provided in the flanges IB, I9 for securing .the condenser to the rear wall of the refrigerator. It can be seen that, because of the shape of the condenser, the back portion I5 is spaced from the rear wall of the refrigerator to 1 provide a path for the natural convection of air over the condenser. Compressed refrigerant from the pumping unit 3 passes through the tubing I4 and is cooled and liquefied by air flowing over the condenser.

In order to provide for increased air circulation over the pumping unit 8 spaced vertical barriers 2l and 22 are arranged between the back portion I5 of the condenser and the rear wall of the refrigerator. The provision of these barriers sectionalizes the air path over the condenser and provides a iiue 23 in the space between the barriers 2| and 22, the rear wall of the refrigerator, and the portion I5 of the condenser. The pumping unit 8 is positioned in the machinery compartment at the lower end of the flue 23 formed between the spaced barriers 2i and 22. The pumping unit is substantially thesame Width as the Width of the condenser |between the spaced barriers, and the pumping unit is positioned directly in line with the ue 23. Thus, the air circulated through the flue 23 passes over the pumping unit 8 and over the heat-dissipating fins 24 which are secured to the case of the pumping unit. In order to further facilitate the directing of air over the pumping unitthe spaced barriers 2| and 22 may be extended forwardly into the machinery compartment along both sides of the pumping unit. These barrier extensions are shown at and 2S, respectively. If desiret, separate barrier elements 25, 23 could be provided in lieu of extending integral portions of the barriers 2I, 22 into the machinery compartrI'he barriers 25, 25 further conine the air path so that air passing upwardly through the flue 23 is forced over the pumping unit 3. In addition, as illustrated in Fig. l, the height of the refrigerant pumping unit S is substantially the same as the height of the machinery compartment 3 so that a substantial amount of the air entering through the louvers 1 at the front portion of the machinery compartment 3 is caused to pass over the refrigerant pumping unit for cooling this unit rather than passing above or below the unit without effective cooling thereof.

The refrigerant pumping unit in a conventional refrigerator usually runs at a somewhat higher temperature than the temperature of the condenser. The pumping unit may, for example, operate at a temperature of 165 F. while the highest temperature of the condenser may be, for example, 130 By my arrangement this higher temperature of the pumping unit is utilized to cause a greater flow of cooling air over the pumping unit. Thus the higher temperature pumping unit causes an increased fiow of air upwardly over the condenser and, by the provision of the flue 23 and the positioning of the pumping unit directly at the lower end of the flue, this increased draft is utilized to cause an increased flow of cooling air over the pumping unit. It will be appreciated that, in the absence of my construction, the increased flow upwardly over the condenser resulting from the high temperature of the pumping unit would be partially dissipated by drawing air through the machinery compartment 3 on both sides of the pumping unit without passing over the pumping unit itself.

The tubing I4 of the condenser is arranged on the sheet I3 in a particular manner which also causes a greater amount of air to flow through the flue 23 and over the pumping unit 8 than over the remainder of the condenser. This is done by circulating the warm refrigerant discharged from the pumping unit 8 rst over the section of the condenser which lies within the iiue 23 and then over the remaining area of the condenser. Since the refrigerant is progressively cooled as it passes through the tubing I4 it will be appreciated that the higher temperature refrigerant circulates through the tubing within the flue 23 and that by the time the refrigerant reaches the remaining tubing of the condenser its temperature has been substantially lowered. Since the draft causing the circulation of air over the condenser varies with the difference between the temperature of the refrigerant and the ambient temperature, the draft causing circulation of air over the section of the condenser within the flue 23 is greater than the draft causing circulation of air over the remainder of the condenser. I-Ience, a greater air ow is secured through the flue 23 than through the space defined by the remainder of the condenser.

In accomplishing this purpose compressed refrigerant from the pumping unit is discharged through a conduit 21 into the path 28 of tubing which is located within the flue 23 between the barriers 2|, 22. The refrigerant then passes in the direction indicated by the arrows through the tubing 29, 30, 3l. From the tubing 3l the refrigerant ows outside the region defined by the nue 23 into the tubing 32 which is located within a section 33 of the condenser outside the flue 23. The refrigerant is conducted in the direction of the arrows through tubing 34 to tubing 35 which is also located in a section 3G of the condenser also outside the flue 23. From the tubing 35 the condensed refrigerant may be conducted by a conventional capillary tube 31 for supply to the evaporator I2. Since the refrigerant is progressively cooled and condensed as it passes through the tubing I4 of the condenser it will be appreciated that the average temperature of the refrigerant in the region of the condenser defined by the flue 23 is substantially higher than the temperature within the section 33 or the section 33 of the condenser. Accordingly, a greater natural draft will be present within the ue 23 and hence an increased air circulation. By positioning the pumping unit directly in line with the lower end of the ue 23 this increased air circulation is utilized to cause a greater circulation of air over the pumping unit 8 than would be possible were the barriers 2I, 22, and the particular arrangement of the condenser tubing in connection therewith not employed.

In the arrangement shown the pumping unit has been centrally located and accordingly two vertical barriers 2I, 22 have been employed to provide the flue 23. It will be apparent, however, that should the pumping unit be located to one side or the other of the condenser then one or the other of the side portions I6, I'I could be utilized as a vertical barrier, only one additional vertical barrier being required at the opposite side of the pumping unit to define the ue. Should the position of the pumping unit and of the flue be so changed it is merely necessary to vary the arrangement of the tubing so that warm refrigerant from the pumping unit always circulates first through the region defined by the flue in line with the pumping unit 8.

In order to obtain additional cooling air for the sections 33 and 36 of the condenser outside the flue 23 a plurality of openings 38 may be provided in the side portions I6 and I1 of the condenser. The openings 38 admit cooling air from the surrounding atmosphere and this air flows upwardly over the tubing which is secured to the sections 33 and 36 of the condenser.

While I have shown and described a specific embodiment of my invention, I do not desire my invention to be limited to the particular construction shown and described and I intend. by

K Vthe appended claims to cover all modifications within the spirit and scope of my invention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. Refrigerating apparatus including a cabinet having a plurality of walls forming a food storage compartment and a machinery compartment below said food storage compartment, a plate type condenser mounted on the rear wall of said cabinet and shaped to provide a space between said condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet for the passage of air, spaced vertical barriers between said condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet for providing a flue extending across only a portion of the width of said condenser, and a refrigerant pumping unit positioned in said machinery compartmentadjacent and in line with the lower endof said flue, said refrigerant pumping unit being of a width substantially the same as the width of said flue, said refrigerant pumping unit operat- `ing at a higher temperaturethan said .condenser -inet having a lplurality of walls forming a food storage compartment and a machinery compartment below said food storage compartment, a'plate type condenser mounted on the rear vwall of saidcabinet and shaped to provide a space between said condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet for the passage of air, spacedvertical'barriers between said condenser and `said `rear wallV `of said cabinet for providing a flue `extending across only a portion of the width of said condenser, a refrigerant pumping unit positionedl in said machinery compartment adjacent and in line with the lower end of said ue, said pumping unit being vsubstantially the same width as the width of said condenser between said spaced barriers, means providing an entrance for air at the forward portion of said machinery compartment, said air passing by natural convection upwardly through the space between said condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet, said pumping unit being substantially the same height as the height of themachinery compartment ywhereby a substantial amount of the air entering through said front portion of said `machinery compartment Ais` caused to passover said pumping unit, and barriers generally in line with said spaced vertical barriers and extending into said machinery Acompartment adjacent thesides of said pumping unit for directing air over said pumping unit and into said flue, said pumping unit operating at a higher temperature than said condenser whereby a greater ow of air is effectedthrough said ue and over said pumping unit than over the remainder of said condenser.

3. Refrigerating apparatus including a cabinet having a plurality of walls forming a food storage compartment and a machinery compartment below said food storage compartment, a plate type condenser mounted on the rear wall of said cabinet and shaped to provide a space between said condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet for the passage of air, spaced vertical barriers between said condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet for providing a flue extending across only a portion of the width of said condenser, a refrigerant pumping unit positioned in said machinery compartment adjacentand in line with the lower end of said flue. and means for conducting warm refrigerant from said pumping unit first to the section of said condenser between said spaced barriers and then to the remainder of said condenser whereby the warm refrigerant causes a greater draft and air circulation through said iiue and over said unit than over the remainder of said condenser.

4. Refrigerating apparatus including a cabinet having a plurality of walls forming a food storage compartment and a machinery compartment below said food storage compartment, a plate type condenser mounted on the rear wall of said cabinet and shaped to provide a space between said condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet for the passage of air, spaced vertical barriers between said condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet to provide a flue extending across only a portion of the width of said condenser, and a refrigerant pumping unit positioned in said machinery adjacent and in line with the lower end of said nue, said condenser including a plurality of vertical turns of tubing secured to the plate thereof for conducting compressed refrigerant, said tubing being arranged `so that warm refrigerant from said pumping unit passes first through turns positioned within said flue and then through the remainder of said turns ofv tubing whereby the warm refrigerant causes a greater draft and air circulation through said iiue and over said unit than over the remainder of said condenser.

5. Refrigerating apparatus including a cabinet having a plurality of walls forming a food storage compartment and a machinery compartment below said food storage compartment, a plate type condenser mounted on the rear wall of said cabinet, said condenser being of U-shaped cross section and including two side portions secured to said rear wall of said cabinet and a back portion spaced from said rear wall of said cabinet to provide a space for the passage of air, a vertical barrier spaced from one of said side portions of said condenser to provide a flue between said condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet, a refrigerant pumping unit positioned in said machinery compartment adjacent and in line with the lower end of said flue, and means for conducting warm refrigerant from said pumping unit rst to the section of said condenserl forming said flue and then to the remainder of said condenser whereby the warm refrigerant causes a greater draft and air circulation through said flue and over said unit than over the remainder of said condenser.

6. Refrigerating apparatus including a cabinet having a plurality of walls forming a food storage compartment and a machinery compartment below said food storage compartment, a plate type condenser mounted on the rear wall of said cabinet and shaped to provide a space between said condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet for the passage of air, spaced verti-` cal barriers between said condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet for providing a flue extending across only a portion of the width of said condenser, a refrigerant pumping unit positioned in said machinery compartment adjacent and in line with the lower end of said flue, said pumping unit being of a width substantially the same as the width of said ue, and means for conducting warm refrigerant from said pumping unit first to the section of said condenser between said spaced barriers and then to the remainder of said condenser whereby the warm refrigerant causes a greater draft and air circulation through said flue and over said unit than over the remainder of said condenser.

7. Refrigerating apparatus including a cabinet having a plurality of walls forming a food storage compartment and a machinery compartment below said food storage compartment, a plate type condenser mounted on the rear wall of said cabinet and shaped to provide a space between said condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet for the passage of air, spaced vertical barriers between said condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet for providing a flue extending across only a portion of the width of said condenser, a refrigerant pumping unit positioned in said machinery compartment adjacent and in line with the lower end of said flue, said unit being substantially the same width as the width of said condenser between said spaced barriers, means providing an entrance for air at the forward portion of said machinery compartment, said air passing by natural convection upwardly through the space between said. condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet, said pumping unit being substantially the same height as the height of the machinery compartment whereby a substantial amount 'of the air entering through said front portion of said machinery compartment is caused'to pass over said pumping unit, means for conducting warm refrigerant from said pumping unit first to the sectionof said condenser between said spaced barriers and then to the remainder of said condenser whereby the warm refrigerant causes a greater draft and air circulation through said flue and over said unit and over the remainder of said condenser, and barriers generally in line with said spaced vertical barriers and extending into said machinery compartment adjacent the sides of said pumping unit for directing air over said pumping unit and into said flue.

8. Refrigerating apparatus including a cabinet having a plurality of walls forming a food storage compartment and a machinery compartment below said food storage compartment, a

plate type condenser mounted on the rear wally of said cabinet, said condenser being of U-shaped cross section and including two side portions secured to the rear wall of said cabinet and a back portion spaced from said rear wall of said cabinet to provide a space for the passage of air, spaced vertical barriers between said condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet for providing a flue extending across only a portion of the width of said condenser, a refrigerant pumping unit positioned in said machinery compartment adjacent and in line with the lower end of said iiue, and means for conducting warm refrigerant from said pumping unit rst to the section of said condenser forming said flue and then to the remainder of said condenser where- Y by the warm refrigerant causes a greater draft and air circulation through said flue and over .8 saidunit than over the remainder'of said coridenser, at least oneof said side portions having .openings therein foradmitting additional air for cooling a section of said condenser outside said ilue.

9. Refrigerating apparatus including a cabinet having a plurality of walls forming a food storage compartment and a machinery compartment below `said food .storage compartment, a plate type'. condenser mounted on the rear wall of said cabinet. said condenser being of U-shaped cross section and including two side portions secured to said rear wallof said cabinet and a back portion spacedfrom said'rear wall of said cabinet to'provide a space for the passage of air, a vertical barrier spaced from one of said side portions vrof said :condenser to provide a flue between said condenser and said rear wall of said cabinet, a refrigerant pumping unit positioned in said machinery compartment adjacent and in line with the lower end of said flue, and means for conducting warm refrigerant from said pumping unit rst to the section of said condenser forming said nue and then tol the remainder of said condenser whereby the warm refrigerant causes a greater draft and air circulation through said ue and over said unit than over the remainder of said condenser, the other of said Side portions having openings therein for admitting additional air for cooling the remainder of said condenser. 1 LEONARD W. ATCHISON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the iile of this patent:

UNITED STATES v PATENTS Number Name Date 1,859,840 Phelps May 24, 1932 2,280,554 Steenstrup Apr. 21, 1942 2,391,507 Philipp Dec. 25, 1945 2,471,960 Johnson May 3'1, 1949 

